Latest / This Week in Yellowstone National Park / This Week in Yellowstone: March 26th to April 1st, 2026

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This Week in Yellowstone: March 26th to April 1st, 2026 · This Week in Yellowstone National Park

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From Yellowstone National Park where spring feels
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about three weeks ahead of schedule This is that
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Scott guy you know in love with a brand new episode
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of this week in Yellowstone What's up everybody?
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This week in Yellowstone National Park from March
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26th to April 1st, 2026, I'll let you know about
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biking the roads, give you some tips about dealing
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with mud season, tell you to hike a canyon rim,
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and share how the park monitors the wolf packs.
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I'll also give you the complete weather forecast,
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the snow pack update, the wildlife report, and
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everything else you need to have an incredible
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time this week in Yellowstone. standard disclaimer
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gonna miss a few details here and there so if
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there's something that you need more information
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on just reach out and ask any questions you may
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have I also mentioned park locations very casually
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so if you're unfamiliar a quick search can help
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also know that this report only covers the drivable
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areas of the park. I should be able to say that
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by now. I say it every week, but sometimes I
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stumble over words. Finally, please know that
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this podcast is a passion project of mine. If
1:14
you enjoy it, I'd love a review or a quick email.
1:17
If you want to support my work further, you can
1:19
check out my hiking and wildlife watching guidebooks,
1:22
or you can join me for a guided hiking tour in
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Yellowstone's backcountry. For more information,
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visit Outdoor -Society .com or contact me directly
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406 -589 -1873. Just send me a text. This week's
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Yellowstone News. So there's not much news in
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the park right now. The main story is the one
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I'm going to be talking about in the experience
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of the week, which is biking in the park. Other
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than that, bears are active. Can talk about that
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in the wildlife report and the trail report.
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And generally only the northern range is open.
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Things are going well in the park. That's about
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it. There's no news, which is good news. I'm
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sure things will pick up and we'll actually have
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some news stories pretty soon. Next couple of
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weeks, some roads open, things like that. But
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right now, no real news in the park. If you want
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some cool news, check out the Caldera Chronicles,
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the USGS weekly kind of podcast, as well as actually,
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I don't know if it's a podcast. I know they write
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it. But check that out if you want some just
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cool geyser news. Otherwise, let's talk about
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the experience of the week. which is biking the
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road between Mammoth and West Yellowstone. So
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biking for the spring season is now officially
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underway in Yellowstone National Park. As of
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March 20th, 2026, the park opened the road between
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Mammoth and West Yellowstone to cyclists and
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pedestrians ahead of the spring vehicle season.
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This annual window allows visitors to travel
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park roads without non -essential motor vehicle
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traffic. Keep in mind that park service staff
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and plowing vehicles are still going to be on
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the road going back and forth, so the roads aren't
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going to be completely empty, just very little
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used. The Mammoth to West Yellowstone corridor
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covers approximately 49 miles and represents
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the primary spring cycling route in Yellowstone.
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Access is permitted only on the roads that have
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been cleared of snow and are not being actively
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plowed. Cyclists must yield to snowplows and
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other authorized vehicles, and road statuses
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can change quickly depending on weather and operational
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needs. So because I am located closer to Mammoth
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than West Yellowstone, I'm going to talk about
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biking the road from Mammoth. So from Mammoth,
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the route begins with a gradual climb past the
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upper terrace loop. and then you kind of go by
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a pretty waterfall and then up to Swan Lake Flats.
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This is the steepest hill you're going to experience
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all day, and it can be a little difficult if
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you're not used to biking, but plug along and
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you'll be fine. Once you're up to Swan Lake Flats,
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everything opens up and it's absolutely gorgeous.
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You're going to see Bunsen Peak. You're going
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to see the Gallatins and all of that. You're
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going to be able to have all of these views of
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mountains that you haven't been able to see for
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a while. It's absolutely stunning. After you
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get through there, you're going to get to Sheep
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Eater Cliff, which is one of my favorite places.
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If the road is good, bike down the Sheep Eater
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Cliff Road and then walk along the river from
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there. It's absolutely stunning. Highly recommend
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that. If you want to call that a day and turn
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around, that's a good turning point. If you want
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to keep going, then eventually you're going to
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reach places like obsidian cliffs, which are
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a significant geological and cultural site composed
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of volcanic glass used historically by indigenous
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people. Really cool place to just take some time.
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Usually when you're driving, you're flying by
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there. And I think there's only one pull out
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and one little visitor center area that is fine.
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But, you know. riding your bike is much better.
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Then you're going to keep winding down and pretty
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soon you're going to get toward Norris Geyser
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Basin. You're going to go by the Roaring Mountain
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and then you're going to drop down to Norris.
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There also is a Norris Geyser Basin overlook
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that you don't have to drop down to get to Norris
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and you can still see the Norris Geyser Basin.
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Important note here As far as I know, Norris
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Geyser Basin is not open to hike right now. So
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if you ride there, you're not going to be able
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to walk around the basin. They're doing some
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repairs last I heard. And so you're just not
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going to be able to do that. However, that's
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a great ride. You go there and back. Fantastic.
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You can turn around or not. If you're feeling
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much more aggressive about things, you could
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ride all the way to West Yellowstone. If you
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are riding to West after you get. To Norris,
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the road descends toward Madison Junction. You're
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going to follow the Gibbon River here. Gibbon
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Falls is prominent and gorgeous, and you're going
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to have some really cool views and opportunities
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to stop in, including good wildlife potential.
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Usually I don't see much at the Swan Lake Flats
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area right now, but you never know. With this
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winter, you might see things, but closer you
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get to Madison, the more wildlife there is. The
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final segment from Madison Junction to West Yellowstone
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spans about 13 to 14 miles and just follows the
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Madison River on a almost perfectly flat road.
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Like it's gorgeous. And if you want to do that,
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great. You're going to have 49 miles each way.
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And so what some people do is they will bike
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from Mammoth to West Yellowstone, spend the night
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in West Yellowstone and then ride back. If you're
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going to do that. Fantastic. Just know that.
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There are no services available along this route
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and food, water, probably restrooms or mechanical
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assistance are not available. If something happens,
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you're kind of stuck. So cyclists are expected
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to be fully self -sufficient and prepared for
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rapidly changing weather conditions, including
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snow, wind and temperature fluctuations. Sometimes
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it can seem like it's a beautiful day and then
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you get beyond Swan Lake Flats and that wind
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starts ripping and you're like, why didn't I
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bring gloves? So. Be prepared. It's spring bicycling
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and it's. It's not summer, right? It's going
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to be cool, but it's also going to be cool because
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there's not a lot of cars out. So know that this
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early season access period is temporary and typically
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ends once roads open to public motor vehicle
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traffic in April. Well, you can still bike on
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the roads after the park roads open to vehicles.
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You're going to be sharing the narrow winding
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roads with cars, so it's not necessarily ideal
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if you're not experienced with that. But right
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now, the Mammoth to West Yellowstone route provides
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a unique and special opportunity to travel a
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significant portion of the road system in a low
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traffic environment. I've done this before. I
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absolutely love it. If you have a good bike,
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Great. If you don't, there's places to rent bikes
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in West Yellowstone, or you can rent them at
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Dan Bailey's up in Livingston before you drive
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down to Gardner. This is a truly great experience.
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And if you love biking, like just going through
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Swan Lake Flats and back like to the Gardner
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River and back is great. Like highly recommend
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it. It's why it's my experience of the week.
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So do that. Enjoy it. Let me hear all about it.
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If you've done it before, what are some of your
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stories? Love to share those. My tip of the week.
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Maneuvering mud season. So mud season has arrived
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in Dallestone National Park. My boots have proven
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that after the last few hikes, so yay! If you're
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planning on hiking right now, this is something
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you need to be ready for. As temperatures rise
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and snow begins to melt across the park, trails
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are turning soft, saturated, and in many cases,
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deeply muddy and slick. Spring conditions always
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bring... unstable trails, snow melts gonna kind
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of impact the ground, we're also gonna get some
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rain and that doesn't drain very well, and the
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cold ground even though it hasn't been like super
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snowy the ground's pretty cold and as that warms
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up all of that combined just makes the mud pretty
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unbearable at times. Right now that means many
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trails are a mix of mud, standing water, and
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lingering snow. It's really not uncommon to hit
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all three on a single hike. That's where footwear
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becomes critical this time of year. Waterproof
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boots are strongly recommended and even then
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expect them to get dirty and not have the greatest
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of traction. The trails are going to be slick,
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uneven, and occasionally submerged. Even the
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best traction boots in mud season in Yellowstone
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are not really going to help you on some trails.
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They will help you on others, so definitely have
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that. Also, gators are a useful addition. They
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help keep mud and water from getting into your
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boots. I highly recommend bringing trekking poles.
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They are a huge difference maker especially when
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navigating in deeper mud or just dealing with
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trying to have any traction whatsoever. I'm saying
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traction a lot because traction matters and all
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of this is important enough to say that in Yellowstone
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The trails do not care what traction you have.
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I've been saying that a couple of times now,
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and I just want to stress that. In lots of places,
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the mud's just gonna stick more and more with
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each step you take, and it turns each foot into
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a brick of mud. Sometimes the mud will just give
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and you'll sink all the way in. I've been hiking
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with somebody and their shoe popped off as they
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sunk in mud and their shoe stuck in the mud and
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then filled with the mud that was overflowing
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and we had to dig out the shoe. Not ideal. So
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everything you can do to avoid that, the better.
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So if you see deep mud, don't step there. You
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know, try and take good steps of where it doesn't
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look like the mud's going to be too bad. Also,
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timing your hike can help a lot. Early in the
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morning when temperatures are cooler, the ground
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is often more firm. As the day warms up, the
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mud warms up and trails soften very quickly.
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By afternoon, sections that were manageable in
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the morning can turn into thick energy draining
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mud. If you want the best conditions available,
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start early and end early. That's your best option.
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Route selection also plays a huge role. The lower
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elevation trails tend to melt out first, but
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they also tend to get muddy first. The higher
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elevation trails may still be snow covered, which
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can actually be easier to travel on than the
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deep mud, depending on the conditions. If you
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need help in deciding which is better, reach
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out to me, I can help you. Know that hiking on
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slopes of trails that are south facing is going
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to be better than those that are north facing
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as they get more sunlight and they dry faster.
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Most of the south facing trails I've been hiking
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recently are perfectly fine. The north ones,
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not so much. So, you might need to adjust your
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plans once you see what conditions are actually
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like on the ground and just find something that
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has dried out a bit more. Again, if you need
11:38
some suggestions, reach out to me happy to help.
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Mud season also slows everything down. Distances
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take longer, footing is less stable, and energy
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use is higher. A hike that feels easy in August
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can feel much more demanding right now. Planning
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shorter routes and giving yourself extra time?
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Very smart approach. There's really no way to
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avoid the reality of mud season in Yellowstone
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right now. If you want to hike, know that trails
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are messy, conditions are inconsistent, and your
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boots are not going to stay clean. But with the
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right expectations and preparations, it's still
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a great time to be out. If you embrace the conditions
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instead of fighting them, mud season becomes
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less of an obstacle and more of just another
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part of experiencing the park as it transitions
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into spring. This is a great time to hike, just
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know it's Not always the most fun, but it's beautiful
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out there. My random Yellowstone fact of the
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week. How Yellowstone monitors the wolves. Monitoring
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wolves in Yellowstone National Park is one of
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the most in -depth wildlife research efforts
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anywhere in the world. Ever since wolves were
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reintroduced in 1995, scientists have been tracking
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them in ways that go far beyond just counting
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how many there are. The goal is to understand
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how they move, how the packs function, how they
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hunt, and how they shape the ecosystem around
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them. A big part of that work starts with radio
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collars. Each winter, biologists capture a small
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number of wolves, usually from a helicopter,
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using either darting or net gunning, and then
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once the animal is safely handled, it's fitted
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with a collar that sends out location data. Some
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collars use GPS and transmit locations via satellite,
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sometimes multiple times a day. Others use VHF
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signals, which require researchers to physically
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track them from the ground or from aircraft.
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National Park Service says that about 30 % of
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the wolves in a pack are collared, which is enough
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to give a clear picture of how that group moves
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across the landscape. Those collars are incredibly
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important. They allow researchers to map territories,
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locate dens, follow dispersing wolves, and even
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detect when a wolf has died if a collar stops
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moving. Over time, this has created one of the
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most detailed long -term data sets for any large
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carnivore anywhere. I should be clear and note
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that Yellowstone's wolf research is not just
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about technology. A lot of it still comes down
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to people in the field. The park's wolf project
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relies heavily on direct observations, especially
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in the northern range where visibility is wide
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open. Biologists spend hours, often entire days,
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watching wolves through spotting scopes. They
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track pack dynamics, identify breeding pairs,
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count pups, and document behavior. These observations
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are critical for understanding how packs change
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over time and how successful they are from year
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to year. Aerial tracking is another major piece
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of the puzzle. Researchers used fixed -wing aircraft
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to locate collared wolves across Yellowstone's
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massive landscape. You may have spotted some
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of the small planes flying in the park over the
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winter and spring. There's one just out the other
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day. They circle an area for a bit. And these
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are the research planes. These flights make it
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possible to quickly find packs, estimate group
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size, and track changes that would be hard to
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catch from the ground. When you combine these
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flights with GPS data, you get a much bigger
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landscape level understanding of where wolves
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are and what they're doing. There's also a strong
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focus on health and genetics. When wolves are
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captured or one is found dead, scientists collect
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samples like blood and tissue. They're used to
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monitor diseases such as mange or canine distemper
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and to build genetic profiles of the individual
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wolves. That genetic work helps researchers understand
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relationships with impacts, track reproduction,
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and measure genetic diversity over time. Studies
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from the USGS show that both disease and genetics
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play a major role in how stable the wolf population
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is in Yellowstone. I talked about how there was
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this distemper that kind of took out a lot of
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pups in the interior this year. That was all
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because these wolves are so studied. In recent
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years, non -invasive methods have become more
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common as well. Researchers collect scat and
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hair samples to extract DNA without ever handling
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the animal. Camera traps are also used, especially
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in the forested or hard to see areas where visual
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observation is limited. These tools help confirm
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pack presence, estimate population size, and
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monitor wolves that are not collared. One of
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the newer and more interesting tools is sound.
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Scientists have started using acoustic recorders
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placed along the landscape to capture wolf howls.
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By analyzing these recordings, they can estimate
16:30
where wolves are, how many packs are in the area,
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and how they communicate across the territory.
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Thousands of howling events have already been
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recorded through this work, adding another layer
16:40
to how wolves are studied. Researchers also spend
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a lot of time studying what wolves eat and how
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they hunt. Using GPS collar data, they can identify
16:48
clusters places where wolves stay in one spot
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for a while, which often signals a kill site.
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Biologists will hike to those locations to confirm
16:56
what prey was taken, it's usually elk, and to
16:59
better understand predator -prey relationships.
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Long -term research has shown that the prey availability,
17:04
especially elk populations, has a major influence
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on wolf behavior and success rates. When you
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step back and look at just wolf monitoring altogether,
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it's not just about keeping track of numbers,
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it's about understanding the entire ecosystem.
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Movement, behavior, genetics, disease, and ecology
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all come together. And that's what makes Yellowstone
17:23
such an important natural laboratory and why
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the work being done here continues to shape how
17:28
wolves are studied and managed across the world.
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You see a lot of studies about these wolves in
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Yellowstone. You see a lot of people watching
17:35
them. That's because they're, you know, this
17:38
test case of how do you reintroduce wolves. Very
17:41
important. They're being studied, they're being
17:44
watched, not always in the best of ways, but
17:48
Every single year, we're learning more and more
17:50
about wolf behavior and scientists are learning
17:53
how to watch them without interfering with them.
17:56
And that is awesome. And that is why Yellowstone
17:59
Wildlife Watching and the experts about that
18:02
deal with wildlife in the park are such fantastic
18:04
people. If you see them out in the field, thank
18:06
them for their work. If you see any ranger, thank
18:08
them for their work. The weather for the coming
18:11
week. So as always, this is the best forecast
18:14
for the week at the time of the recording. It
18:16
could change. It might not, we'll see, but this
18:20
at least gives you kind of an idea of what to
18:22
expect. So let's start with Lamar Valley. On
18:26
Thursday the 26th, high of 43, low of 17, there'll
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be some rain in the morning, then Friday 51 and
18:32
24, Saturday 56 and 29, Sunday 58 and 34, Monday
18:39
56 and 33, with a 72 % chance of rain developing
18:43
in the afternoon, Tuesday High of 44, low of
18:47
28, currently a 65 % of 2 inches of snow. And
18:51
Wednesday, high of 44, low of 29, 64 % chance
18:55
of 1 inch of snow. The weather for Gardner, Montana,
18:59
starting on Thursday the 26th, high of 47, low
19:02
of 21, maybe some rain in the morning. Friday,
19:06
high of 55, low of 29. Saturday, high of 60,
19:10
low of 33. Sunday, high of 62, low of 37. Monday
19:14
high of 59 low of 34 with a 53 % chance about
19:19
third about 1 tenth of an inch of rain in the
19:22
afternoon Evening and Tuesday 47 and 30 60 %
19:26
chance a 1 inch of snow Wednesday 45 and 32 60
19:31
% chance a 1 inch of snow the weather for Cook
19:34
City On Thursday, high of 39, low of 15, some
19:38
snow showers in the morning, and those fade away.
19:41
Friday, 47 and 26. Saturday, 52 and 30. Sunday,
19:46
53 and 35. Monday, 52 and 32, 75 % chance of
19:52
some rain or snow starting in the late morning,
19:54
early afternoon. Tuesday, 43 and 27, 70 % chance
20:00
of 2 inches of snow. And Wednesday, 39 and 28,
20:04
65 % chance of 2 inches of snow. So, good through
20:07
the weekend, then Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday
20:10
look to be wet, rainy, or snowy, so we shall
20:13
see. Speaking of snow, here's the snowpack update.
20:17
As of March 24th, the snowpack is around 85 %
20:20
and normal for this time of year. The eastern
20:22
and northern ranges of the park are 102 % and
20:25
normal, while the western and southern sides
20:27
are about 75 % and normal. Last year on this
20:30
date. We are averaging around 103 percent of
20:32
normal So we're behind where we were this incoming
20:35
snow and rain that looks like it's gonna hit
20:37
at the end of the this week like Monday Tuesday
20:40
Wednesday into next week That's really gonna
20:42
help balance these numbers out after some warm
20:45
weather Road conditions the only road open right
20:49
now is the road between Gardner, Montana and
20:51
Cook City, Montana That's gonna be the case for
20:53
another couple of weeks. Please be aware that
20:56
this road can close at any time due to inclement
20:58
weather For up -to -date information, call 307
21:01
-344 -2117 for recorded messages, or you can
21:05
sign up to receive the Yellowstone Road Alerts
21:07
on your cell phone by texting the number 82190
21:10
to the number 888 -777. Camping information.
21:16
There's only one campground open in the park
21:18
right now, and that's the Mammoth Campground,
21:19
which is open year -round. I talked to somebody
21:21
that camped there the other day. They loved it.
21:23
They said that there's one other person in the
21:25
entire campground. So if you want to camp, Do
21:28
it. It's great. That brings us to the wildlife
21:32
watching update. So the biggest news right now
21:35
is that carcass that I've been telling you about
21:37
at Blacktail Ponds has had a grizzly on it. So
21:44
that's cool. There are also wolves on it the
21:46
other day. That's awesome. There's bears all
21:49
around. I went hiking at Hell Roaring and there
21:51
were tons of bear prints out there. There was
21:53
a carcass by Hell Roaring that wolves had been
21:55
feeding on the day before. And then the grizzly
21:58
came and was eating it the morning that I was
22:00
there. Didn't know that at the time, so that
22:02
was neat. There's been moose hanging around by
22:06
the Floating Island Lake area and also before
22:09
you get to Hell Roaring. between Mammoth and
22:12
Hell Roaring off in the little field. There's
22:15
also been tons of bison moving back and forth,
22:17
the pronghorn are entering the valleys. There's
22:20
eagles all over. There is energy and excitement
22:23
and people have been seeing bluebirds in the
22:25
park. And that's going to continue through this
22:28
weekend for sure. So if you're going to the park
22:31
right now, wildlife watching is awesome. There's
22:34
been a lot of wolf sightings. If you drive back
22:36
and forth, just drive out to Pebble Creek and
22:39
back and more than likely people will be watching
22:42
wolves. They might be a few miles away or they
22:44
might be really close. It's just hit and miss
22:46
right now, but animal activity is picking up.
22:50
We're also looking at some bison that are dying
22:53
as they just aren't making it through the winter,
22:56
the older ones and stuff. So those are being
22:59
preyed on by the wolves and as the bison start
23:04
birthing soon you're going to see some breech
23:06
birds things like that so there's going to be
23:08
some dead bison scattered about which means that
23:09
the predators or the scavengers are going to
23:12
be out there a lot more feasting there have been
23:15
tons of elk near the north entrance there have
23:17
been a couple foxes out near the northeast entrance.
23:22
So if you're going into the park this week, like
23:24
I said, your best bet is to drive back and forth,
23:26
get there early by 10 or so when it's warm like
23:31
it has been. Animal activity really drops down
23:34
and then picks up later in the afternoon evening.
23:36
But the biggest news right now is that that pull
23:40
out by blacktail ponds is going to be packed
23:42
because bears are feasting even before the bear
23:45
came out. It was awesome. Like I said, the wolves
23:47
were out there. And then, there's been coyotes
23:50
out there, there's been eagles, there's been
23:52
all sorts of great wildlife watching just by
23:55
those ponds by mammoth. So, enjoy. If I hear
24:00
anything else, I'll probably post about it on
24:02
my social media, but if you need anything, just
24:06
reach out to me. Happy to help. Oh, I also should
24:10
mention that I have hiking and wildlife watching
24:13
guidebooks available through my website outdoor
24:15
-society .com or you can just message me 406
24:20
-589 -1873 for a link. Happy to hook you up with
24:24
those. Ebooks are only $10 and always happy to
24:27
send those out. Trail alerts and updates. Right
24:31
now there's no official trail alerts this week.
24:34
Those are going to resume in April. but bear
24:36
sightings are becoming more common like I said
24:39
I followed some tracks they were very fresh in
24:41
the mud it was kind of amazing and I was super
24:44
excited and everyone else was like oh that doesn't
24:46
sound good but the bear wasn't anywhere near
24:49
there wasn't scatter around or anything but know
24:51
that if you're on a trail right now you're going
24:54
to be dealing with mud, and there's a chance
24:56
that bears and other wildlife is going to be
24:58
out there. And when you're dealing with less
25:00
than ideal trail conditions and wildlife, that
25:03
can make for a very unfun day, especially because
25:07
with wildlife near a trail, you're going to have
25:08
to move around. That could mean going through
25:11
a patch of snow that you're just postholing in
25:13
through a bog where it's super muddy or anything.
25:17
So head out there. Be smart. be safe, carry bear
25:20
spray, have it readily accessible, not in a backpack,
25:23
and know how to use it. That brings me to my
25:26
Trek of the Week. So the Yellowstone River Overlook
25:29
Trail at the Yellowstone River Picnic Area is
25:31
what I'm recommending this week, mainly because
25:34
it's going to be mostly dry, it's going to be
25:36
easy to hike on, and it's super scenic and awesome
25:38
with some good wildlife potential and amazing
25:40
scenery. So this is located just across the brand
25:44
new bridge over the Yellowstone River and as
25:47
you're headed toward Lamar. The area is minimally
25:50
signed, and the picnic area is home to one of
25:53
the most underrated hikes in Yellowstone National
25:55
Park. This is one of my most frequented trails
25:58
in the park, this in Hill Rowing probably. No
26:00
matter what the season, I like to go to this.
26:03
I'm recommending it this week for two reasons.
26:05
One is that the hike is snow -free. The other
26:07
is that it's short and relatively easy, and one
26:11
that never disappoints. It's best known for showcasing
26:13
the unique geology and sweeping views of the
26:15
canyon, river, and mountains of the Northern
26:17
Range. making it kind of the perfect half day
26:20
jaunt. Not only will the views just absolutely
26:23
wow you, but you may see bison, bighorn sheep,
26:27
eagles, migratory birds, pronghorn, who knows.
26:31
The only real difficulty right now for this trail
26:34
is the start. And that's because the picnic area
26:38
is currently closed. You may be able to park
26:41
at the pullouts nearby and hike up the trail,
26:43
but that privilege could be ending any day, especially
26:45
once the construction crews return to finish
26:48
the picnic area remodel. So if the pullouts nearby
26:51
are closed, you'll have to hike this trail from
26:53
the Specimen Ridge Trail west trailhead. That's
26:56
just a mile or so east of the picnic area. To
26:59
do this version of the hike, you'll follow the
27:02
Specimen Ridge Trail to the junction, which is
27:04
about a mile in distance. Please be aware that
27:07
large herds of bison often frequent the first
27:09
three quarters of a mile of this trail, the Besman
27:11
Ridge Trail West, and that's going to require
27:14
you to walk far around them, off trail, sometimes
27:16
uphill. If this isn't something you're comfortable
27:19
with, do not attempt it. From the junction, turn
27:23
right and follow the canyon rim as far as you
27:25
wish. Make sure you wander around here and take
27:28
in the views. The side of the Yellowstone River
27:30
from this trail is truly gorgeous. Once you're
27:34
at the ridge, I say go at least to the bend of
27:37
the river by Bumpus Butte, which is about 1 .2
27:40
miles from the region. The path here isn't complicated
27:43
and right now the main source of having to do
27:47
any sort of a detour is going to be because of
27:50
mud, bison, or bighorn sheep. Stay on the canyon
27:53
rim when you're hiking and you're going to recognize
27:56
Bumpus Butte that I mentioned because there's
27:58
going to be steam coming off the base and it's
28:01
directly across from Calcite Springs, a popular
28:03
place as you're headed up toward Tower. This
28:06
is usually where I recommend people turn around
28:08
as it gets pretty all the way to the picnic area,
28:13
but if you do this, you're fine. Just sit and
28:17
enjoy the views. There's some rocks by that Bumpus
28:20
Butte area. And I usually have lunch there. I
28:24
watch animals. The marmots are going to start
28:26
coming out any day. There's little wildflowers
28:29
that are popping out. There's birds flying overhead.
28:32
And it's honestly like right now, I love this
28:35
trail. I love the energy here. I think you'll
28:37
love it too. And it's not too bad. If the parking
28:40
area near the picnic area is open, then it's
28:43
about the same amount of distance. but you're
28:46
just going to be hiking up a hill to start, then
28:48
following the canyon rim the river is going to
28:50
be on your right, and then you're going to get
28:51
to Bumpens Butte. If you get to Bumpens Butte,
28:54
hike all the way up though until you get to the
28:56
junction. The view at the junction is one of
28:58
my favorite little gems of this that not everybody
29:01
does. All right, that is the end of this week's
29:05
episode. In the next episode, I'm going to return
29:07
with all the information you need to have a good
29:09
week in the park, including the wildlife, weather,
29:12
and trail updates. Until then, book a tour with
29:15
me. Pick up a guidebook of mine, and happy trails!
29:44
Copyright 2026, baby.